Japan's Life Premium Income Continues Downward Trend

Japan's life insurance sector saw a 4.9% drop in premiums to 11.14 trillion yen (US$124 billion) for the first four months of the 2009 fiscal year starting in April.

New business for individual life insurance and annuities declined 3.2% and 8.8% to 19.89 trillion yen and 2.75 trillion yen, respectively, in the first four months of the 2009 fiscal year. New group life insurance plunged 49.1% to 1.09 trillion yen, while new group annuity business rose 412.7% to 4 billion yen, according to the Life Insurance Association of Japan's study of 45 insurers.

Japan's life insurance industry had total assets of 313.74 trillion yen by July, down 2.8% from the previous year. Its invested assets stood at 305.18 trillion yen, of which 75.1% or 235.5 trillion yen was in securities investments. Japanese life insures have the biggest proportion, 39.3% of their invested portfolios, in government bonds, totaling 123.4 trillion yen.

Total in-force business for individual life insurance dropped 4.5% to 925.43 trillion yen in premiums in the first four months of the fiscal year, while individual annuities increased 1.1% to 91.47 trillion yen.

In July, Japanese life insurers reported an 8.7% drop in premiums to 2.774 trillion yen. New individual life insurance and annuities fell 4.9% and 16% to 6.15 trillion yen and 746 billion yen, respectively.